Trivia of the week: I'm quite certain that you're all familiar with Transylvania and the legend of Dracula, but do you know in which country Transylvania is located? And do you know that there actually was a man named Dracula on whom the legend was built?
Transylvania is located in the central part of Romania and the man on whom the famous legend of Count Dracula was built is a folk legend and hero in the eyes of the Romanian people. Vlad Tepes was the Prince of Wallachia and was better know as, "Vlad the Impaler." His surname, Dracula, means "Son of the Dragon." Historically, he's best known for his resistance against the Ottoman empire and its expansion and for impaling his enemies. Though he most certainly killed his enemies in a cruel manner, his reputation was greatly exaggerated through the usage of pamphlets, which spread his fame beyond Eastern Europe and throughout the western parts of Europe. His reputation in his own country, however, was and is as a man who stood up to both foreign and domestic enemies. He is considered one of the greatest leaders in the country's history and was voted one of "100 Greatest Romanians" in 2006. Source: Wikipedia
Romania is a fascinating country, with a really dark past. Read up on it. I promise it makes for a fascinating read!
Transylvania is located in the central part of Romania and the man on whom the famous legend of Count Dracula was built is a folk legend and hero in the eyes of the Romanian people. Vlad Tepes was the Prince of Wallachia and was better know as, "Vlad the Impaler." His surname, Dracula, means "Son of the Dragon." Historically, he's best known for his resistance against the Ottoman empire and its expansion and for impaling his enemies. Though he most certainly killed his enemies in a cruel manner, his reputation was greatly exaggerated through the usage of pamphlets, which spread his fame beyond Eastern Europe and throughout the western parts of Europe. His reputation in his own country, however, was and is as a man who stood up to both foreign and domestic enemies. He is considered one of the greatest leaders in the country's history and was voted one of "100 Greatest Romanians" in 2006. Source: Wikipedia
Romania is a fascinating country, with a really dark past. Read up on it. I promise it makes for a fascinating read!
Vlad the Impaler
Ceaucescu's People's Palace- 2nd largest office building in the world after the Pentagon
Women's Monastery
In the monastery courtyard
I can't quite figure out what this means....
Really cool plastic Romanian money, the Lei
With Bambi, my Bucharest host and IM coworker, at CoffeeRight. =-D
3 comments:
Have you read "The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova? It's based on the "true story" of Dracula, but is a fabulous read. It would probably be even more interesting to you since you have been to some of the places!
Again, great pictures and thanks for the history of Dracula! Fascinating! Love you!
Somehow I missed this post. Only one I've not read recently. Hmmm. Sounds/looks like a great trip.
Absolutely agree about "The Historian", BTW. =)
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